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Friday, June 21, 2013

Most Effective Athletes to Market Your Product

When it comes to marketing your product, it's important to have a good representative. Seeing this celebrity holding or using your product on camera is more important than whether they actually use the product. From golfers to hockey players, athletes are the perfect spokespersons for promoting your company.

Michael Jordan

Image via Flickr by cliff1066

While he isn't actively playing in the NBA, Michael Jordan is still one of the most recognized faces in all of sports. In the early 90s, Nike used Jordan and Spike Lee in the famous "It must be the shoes!" campaign. More recently, Jordan has found himself in ads with Charlie Sheen for Hanes, and although it seems like an unlikely duo, Sheen's off-camera antics and Jordan's recognizable face have certainly made an impact on sales.

Danica Patrick
For the most part, race car drivers don't do lots of commercials. However, when you're a great driver and a beautiful woman, advertisements are part of the job. First featured during the Super Bowl, a scantily clad Danica Patrick appeared in ads for Go Daddy. The commercial promised more pictures and videos of Patrick on the website and undoubtedly increased the sale of web domain names.

Alexander Ovechkin

Image via Flickr by Keith Allison

This hockey superstar has had a few spots in commercials recently. In the always funny Sportscenter ads, he plays a Russian Spy. He's also done marketing for CCM, the official jersey of the NHL. If you want to see this hockey phenom take the ice, make sure to get some Washington Capital tickets and see firsthand why you would want this man to represent you. The more talented, the better the spokesperson.

Derek Jeter

Image via Flickr by Keith Allison

Jeter is arguably the most recognized face in all of baseball. With multi-million dollar contracts to celebrity girlfriends, Jeter is a marketer's dream. Endorsements seem to be part of this star's persona; he has had deals and commercials with Nike, Visa, Gillette, Mastercard, Ford, and Gatorade – just to name a few. His stints as spokesman for these companies has left him as the highest paid baseball endorser in the country.

Drew Brees

New Orleans Saints pint-sized quarterback Drew Brees is not only one of the highest paid players in the NFL, but also an endorser of several products. He's been an MVP and a Super Bowl champion, so he's highly recognized. But his most famous commercial pitch was for Pepsi, where he traded his Pepsi to the vocal group One Direction for a chance to sing on stage with the band. After hearing his performance, it became clear that Brees should stay a football player.

Roger Federer

Image via Flickr by Yann Caradec

If you're from America and love sports, tennis may not be too high on the list. However, its global appeal is staggeringly huge. Federer, one of the top players in the sports, has done numerous campaigns for Gillette, Nike, Mercedes, and Rolex. So, if you're looking for someone to promote everyday products all the way up to high-end luxuries, Federer is your man.

While getting a high-profile celebrity to market your company is indeed a difficult process, start small. Local athletes and fan favorites often do spots on radio and television for local companies. Make sure that hiring these athletes is a profitable venture as well. Above all, make sure you do your part to be a reputable company. Spokesmen can only get you so far; the rest is up to you.